Working Class Hero

The Kennedy Center Honors this year were spectacular choices and spectacle. Robert DeNiro, Mel Brooks, Dave Brubeck, Grace Bumbrey and the Boss, Bruce Springsteen. If you didn't get a chance to see the special on CBS last week, it's all on YouTube. The Springsteen tribute closed the show and, wow, it's thrilling. Here's the clips, starting with the hilarious, then moving Jon Stewart:



The second part starts has Vietnam vet Ron "Born on the Fourth of July" Kovic speaking about meeting Bruce, then John Mellencamp doing a two-part "Born in the U.S.A." segueing from his own style to Bruce's. Then comes a heartstopping duet of "I'm on Fire" by Ben Harper and Jennifer Nettles. She's new to me but blowaway great. Melissa Etheridge brings everyone spontaneously to their feet with her rendition of "Born to Run." (The edits are pretty evident here -- I've heard some whole numbers were cut for the TV special length as well.) Great watching everyone nodding and tapping to the music, especially the President and the First Lady:



The last section has Eddie Vedder followed by Sting and a cast of thousands:



The award was no doubt helped by the fact that the Boss worked for the President towards the end of the campaign, but how cool is it to have someone with tastes that some of us left out the previous eight years can actually relate to in a huge way?

I know my friends on the left love to complain about Obama, but I once again guarantee that even if a decent Dem succeeds him, we're going to miss having him as our Head of State.

Strap your hands across those engines...